Little Matvii, great thirst for life. 2

This boy has already overcome the worst... Now he wants to learn how to live.

Matvii is 9 years old. He spent almost a year on a ventilator. He was born tiny – weighing just 900 grams – and premature, and from the first minutes of his life he fought not for dreams or toys, but simply to breathe. At 4 months old, he underwent complex intestinal surgery. Then – 144 days on a ventilator. Only at one year and seven months old was the boy discharged home for the first time.

Matvii could have been a normal, smiling boy running around in the yard, as the doctors said. But life decided otherwise. He has spastic tetraparesis, hydrocephalus, severe movement disorders, scoliosis, developmental delays, and vision problems. And despite all this, he reaches out for life. He carefully observes everything around him, reacts to new toys, rejoices at his mother's voice, tries to sit up, leans on his hands, makes new sounds, and tries to take his first steps. He still needs support, but this is already great progress.

Matvii has been undergoing rehabilitation for six years. Thanks to constant training, he has learned to hold his head up, sit without assistance, roll over onto his stomach, and try to stand on his feet. Each step is like a new discovery.

The Plakhonin family was forced to leave Kharkiv to protect their child from constant shelling. They do not have the financial means to undergo a new course of rehabilitation on their own. But one course of rehabilitation is more than just a medical service. It is a step towards living life to the fullest. So that the child does not just observe life, but becomes a part of it.

Because every good deed has consequences. Sometimes big ones. Like Matvii's first step. Help him!